Life is relentless; our time and energy are constantly being pulled in multiple directions, which can leave us feeling tired, overwhelmed, exhausted, and perhaps not as engaged or present in the parts of our lives that matter most. So how are we able to thrive through the setbacks and failures?

Resilience.

Resilience is a buzzword that we often see and hear; yet, I find myself wondering - what does it mean to be resilient or have resilience? Well, resilience is something that we develop throughout our lives as we are exposed to various stressful and/or traumatic event(s). Generally, it is defined as our ability to overcome these events while maintaining a relatively normal physiological function. The skills and habits that we often develop to get us through these experiences are rooted in various behavioural, biological, and cognitive responses; which have a profound impact on our personal growth. 

An important aspect of resilience is that we have to experience brief exposures to stress, difficulty, or distress with opportunities to recover, starting from when we are young. Resilient individuals still experience stress and difficulties, but they are often able to leverage psychological, social, cultural, and physical resources to maintain a stable trajectory of growth over time in spite of the adversities they face. The biological mechanisms that contribute to resilience are extremely complex and involve interactions neurobiologically, genetically, epigenetically, and through interactions with our environment. While research suggests that we may not all be at the same starting point, that doesn’t mean we all can’t get to the same endpoint. We possess the ability to change our brain and cultivate stronger resilience, regardless of our starting point.

How do we become resilient?

Dr. Robin Hanley-Dafoe characterizes the 5 components of resilience, which include:

1. Belonging - feeling that you are part of something bigger than yourself, trust, security

2. Perspective - maintaining a healthy perspective in adverse situations

3. Acceptance - knowing that bad things happen and building momentum to move forward

4. Hope - lean toward positivity and believe in the abilities you possess

5. Humour - not taking ourselves seriously and seeing the humour in situations

By incorporating these components into our lives and practicing them (the most important part!) we are all able to develop resilience. However, when we are feeling trapped in burnout, stressful or traumatic event(s), incorporating some of these changes into our lives can be challenging, and rightfully so.

Taking the Time to Recover

Society tends to reward us by how quickly we can get up, push through, or be “okay” and often associates resilience with “grit” or “mental toughness”, which is a very narrow-minded view. This doesn’t help us create a solid foundation of resilience. It is often forgotten that we need to take time to recover, better yet, that it is okay to take time to recover and to re-strategize. Simply put, if we keep climbing the same ladder to get something off the top shelf, but the object is on the other side of the room, society rewards us for continuing to climb, but doesn’t necessarily support us by allowing us to take the time to think about what we are doing and/or to totally move the ladder! Both recovery and re-strategizing are important steps in resilience, which may make us uncomfortable, but as Barack Obama said, “Fear, uncertainty, and discomfort are your compasses toward growth”.

While working on incorporating all of these components into our lives is great, the reality is we likely do not have the time or bandwidth to do so. Instead, we should have compassion for ourselves. Remember, research suggests that we are all capable of resilience. Dr. Robin Hanley-Dafoe suggests identifying what we need to feel well first and foremost, and then making those activities a priority. 

Still not sure how to implement the components of resilience into your life? Not quite sure where to start?

• Learn more with our Workplace Resilience Roadmap and start with a free sample download.

• Set up a Workshop or Lunch and Learn for your team on Resilience

• Start learning on your own with self-paced courses on Burnout or Resilience

• Tune into the Science of Work Podcast to get tips on setting yourself up for recovery and success. (Check out all our episodes on Apple, Spotify or wherever you listen).
  
  

Inspired By:

Camins, Stephanie. “What Is Resiliency?” Road to Growth Counseling, 6 Sept. 2020, roadtogrowthcounseling.com/what-is-resiliency.

Hanley-Dafoe, Robyne. “Everyday Resiliency.” Dr. Robyne Hanley-Dafoe, Jan. 2020, robynehd.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/RobyneHD_EverydayResiliency_Jan2020.pdf.

Hauser, Stuart, et al. Out of the Woods: Tales of Resilient Teens (Adolescent Lives). 1st ed., Harvard University Press, 2008

Hornor, Gail. “Resilience.” Journal of Pediatric Health Care, vol. 31, no. 3, 2017, pp. 384–90. Crossref, doi:10.1016/j.pedhc.2016.09.005.

Mahmoud, Najjia N., and David Rothenberger. “From Burnout to Well-Being: A Focus on Resilience.” Clinics in Colon and Rectal Surgery, vol. 32, no. 06, 2019, pp. 415–23. Crossref, doi:10.1055/s-0039-1692710

Osório, Carlos, et al. “Adapting to Stress: Understanding the Neurobiology of Resilience.” Behavioral Medicine, vol. 43, no. 4, 2016, pp. 307–22. Crossref, doi:10.1080/08964289.2016.1170661.

“Resilience in a Time of Crisis.” Nursing, vol. 50, no. 6, 2020, pp. 49–51. Crossref, doi:10.1097/01.nurse.0000669240.74723.b7.

Rutter, Michael. “Annual Research Review: Resilience - Clinical Implications.” Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, vol. 54, no. 4, 2012, pp. 474–87. Crossref, doi:10.1111/j.1469-7610.2012.02615.x.

---. “Resilience as a Dynamic Concept.” Development and Psychopathology, vol. 24, no. 2, 2012, pp. 335–44. Crossref, doi:10.1017/s0954579412000028.

Walsh, Pauline, et al. “Learning and Teaching Approaches Promoting Resilience in Student Nurses: An Integrated Review of the Literature.” Nurse Education in Practice, vol. 45, 2020, p. 102748. Crossref, doi:10.1016/j.nepr.2020.102748.